


A Pair of One Piece Drabbles

by cloudedguardian



Category: One Piece
Genre: Drabble Collection, Friendship, Gen, Spoilers up to Saobody, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:47:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23683372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloudedguardian/pseuds/cloudedguardian
Summary: Two One Piece Drabbles from a writing challenge I did back in 2016Prompts:1. Money2. Trickery
Kudos: 4





	1. A Brief Foreword

So, I'll keep this short.

With everything going on, I've been encouraged to find something "productive" to do with my surplus time by my pysch, therapist, and friends. Really, I've pretty much been ordered to by this point.

So for the first time since 2016, I'm doing the 750 words challenge. For those who don't know, this is a challenge where you try to do 750 words of creative writing every day for a month. 

However, as with anything I try to do to improve my mental health- The first two days go great, and then Day Three is a full-out war with my anxiety sabotaging me at every turn.

This time, however, I had the sense of mind to ask for advice about what to do _before_ starting. May as well make use of the fact that it's consistent in its bullshit.

That advice?

"Piss it off."

"What?"

"Do something that pisses it off. Do something, anything, that defies it. It doesn't have to do with writing. It can be, of course, all the better if it is. But it doesn't _have_ to be."

So. To flip off my dear Anxiety, who encourages me to burn my writing the minute it is on paper lest it possibly be seen by anybody, I'm posting two of my old drabbles on the internet.

Where they could possibly be seen by thousands.

Oh dear _god,_ this feels like such a horrible idea.

But fuck it. Forward is rarely a path that stays within one's comfort zone.

And now, if any of you ask "Why the fuck did you post this garbage?" I'll know you didn't read this foreword. 

Because fuck anxiety, that's why.


	2. Money

Count every bill. Weigh every piece of gold. Every coin is precious, every pearl sacred. Each one has worth, worth in beli, worth in blood.

One hundred million.

The price of her town's freedom.

It's a lot. It's nearly too much. Not too much to pay, nothing could be too much to pay, they're worth everything to her, and there's nothing she wouldn't give to save them. Even through the glares, even through the anger and hatred she sees in their eyes, it's worth it all if she can just save them, pay them back for the home they've given her.

One hundred million bellis. The price of her family's lives. It's almost too much to bear. It's almost too heavy to bear on her own frail shoulders. She's only one woman. Once only one child, with hands bleeding from blisters around a bloodied drawing quill and eyes nearly blind from grieving tears.

It's nearly too much.

And then all at once, it is. The weight of Arlong's lies pile on top of it all: The people she's betrayed, the friends she's lost, the tears and blood they've all shed. Pounds upon pounds of blood soaked and dirty bills that's been fought for tooth and nail for nearly a decade. All of it falls upon her shoulders all at once, and she bends, then breaks.

The knife hurts, but it's barely a pinprick compared to the tide of agony and despair that she's nearly drowning under. Her town, her family, her very _home_ \- They're marching to their own self-assured destruction with forgiveness and understanding in their eyes... And it's a hundred, a thousand times worse than when they looked at her with hatred.

And so the knife, barely felt and not nearly enough, stabs in again and again and again in a hopeless, pointless attempt to make it all stop.

She wants nothing more than his mark off her skin, to have nothing to do with him anymore, for him to not exist, for her to not exist-

Long calloused fingers close gently around her wrist and halts the knife in mid-air. She's shaking with grief, with anger, with despair, and she yells, she screams at him. He just looks back with perfect calm, hearing underneath it all what's been begging to be said since she sold her soul in desperation to that grinning shark of a devil.

"Save me... Please."

Suddenly there's warm straw on her head, broken strands catching in her hair- And a weight suddenly gone from her back.

He carries it all as if it weighs nothing.

No, she realizes, as she stares after him- At the clenched fists, the steel in his eyes. He feels its weight; every pound, every ounce, every drop of blood. He's just strong enough to carry it all and more.

Because she's his.


	3. Trickery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a sort of SaobodyAU, a scene I could see happening if things had just been a little different.
> 
> \------

"LUFFY!"

The Strawhat Captain paused, nearly jerked to a stop at the sound of Chopper's cry. A very cold feeling was spreading through his stomach at the tone of it.

The crew was getting back together, they were reuniting- Hearing his name shouted by one of his family should be a good thing, it should be happy, joyful, relieved to see each other.

But that shout had nearly been a scream, clearly distressed and nearly pained. (Luffy was generally a very optimistic person, but there were far too many scars close to his heart today, the burn across his chest seemed tighter, and at the sound of that scream his heart nearly stopped at the memory of a similar cry from another family member rang through his head.)

He turned on his heel and ran back the way he came, Hancock's cloak fluttering in the wind, and the people around him darting out of his way. He was just a child to them, but there was purpose and power in his stride, and the people of Saobody had long learned to get out of the way of people like that, no matter how kindly they smiled when they strode.

"Even if it's a joke!" Chopper choked out, sniffling loudly as the feeling of betrayal he was desperately trying to ignore blossomed painfully in his chest. "You shouldn't say things like that! Never!"

"The hell's your problem?" His captain asked, looking down at him as if he was some sort of creature below his attention. Luffy never looked at him that way, had always refused to call him a monster, or, on the rare occasion he did, it was never said that way- Luffy had always included himself in that word as well, made it nearly a word of pride. Chopper had taken it as a word of pride, but now... Now...

"What even is this thing?" His captain asked distantly, but Chopper barely heard him.

Had things changed that much? Had two years changed their hearts that much? Was he nothing to them now? Was that why Luffy was getting new crew-members? Were monsters no good anymore? Were monsters and devils, and witches, all the outcasts that had found a place under the Sunny's flag just not strong enough anymore?

Chopper's eyes welled with tears, and he opened his mouth to shout, scream, rage at his idiot, betraying captain-

"Chopper."

When a voice as familiar and warm as Hiluluk's fireplace cut through it all.

"What are you doing over there?"

"Eh?" The reindeer slowly turned around, blinking tears out of his eyes to see a cloaked figure twenty feet away, standing tall and proud, the form as familiar as could be, even with the fur cast around his shoulders. Chopper blinked in puzzlement, looking first between the Luffy behind him, and then at the young man in front of him.

The Luffy behind him had stood up, glaring viciously, and spluttering about, "You again!" but faltered suddenly as the young man in front began to walk over.

"I.... Can't....move... What... The hell is this? I'm gonna-"

"Oi."

A voice, as soft and chilling as black silk cut the angry blustering off, and Chopper's head span around again to look at the young man who was coming over, anger visible in cold blue eyes. The anger faded to concern as they flicked down to look at Chopper, but the steel behind them never vanished.

"Hey, Chopper, what's wrong?"

"L-Luffy?"

"Wait, is that... Captain, I think that might be the REAL Strawhat Luffy..."

"WHAT! No way! He's supposed to be dead!"

Chopper's head was now absolutely whipping between the two figures. Two Luffy's? No wait, the REAL Luffy? Does that mean that one of them was fake? But... Then what about Zoro and Sanji- And what would happen to Robin and- Oh right!

"AH! L-luffy- Robin got kidnapped!"

"Ehhhh? No she didn't, I just passed her a few minutes ago, she's headed to the Sunny. She's probably there now, actually."

Wait, so that wasn't really Robin either? And - He was so confused, what was even going on?

Then, as if in answer- A laugh so familiar and warm and tinged with relief that it cut through his panicked thoughts and settled his rushing mind down.

"Oh! I get it! You got tricked! Shi-shi-shi! Is that why you're so upset?"

Chopper looked back up at the young man, at his gentle warm eyes, at the relieved laugh, at the concern in his voice. The amusement wasn't cruel, it was relieved as if everything about him was saying 'I'm glad it's just that, because then it means no-one's hurt.'

Chopper stared up at him, puzzlement and betrayal slowly fading away to hope as his mind began to log, "This is my Captain, right here, warm and loving, and cold as steel when someone hurts us." Luffy had been ready to turn that steel against the people behind him just because they'd made Chopper cry. But, that was who his Captain was.

"...Y-yeah..." Chopper said softly, rubbing the tears from his eyes hastily with a hoof. His Luffy laughed again and, in a movement speedy enough to make Chopper squawk in surprise, scooped the small reindeer up into his arms.

"L-luffy... I'm s-sorry..."

"Eh? For what?"

Lots of things, was the honest answer... But with Luffy holding him up in his arms, and the feel of a large burn that didn't heal quite right under his hooves, there were only two that were pressing. 'I'm sorry for not being there...' and...

"I'm sorry for doubting you-"

"What are you going on about?" His Captain laughed, and Chopper stilled at the familiarity of those words. "Let's go."

"Yeah..."

\---

_"I appreciate the offer, it means a lot to me, but I'm a monster you know, so-"_

_"What are you going on about? LET'S GO!"_


End file.
